I am not sure if there is a "Mother's Day" here in Argentina, but I just realized that the American holiday is on Sunday. Seeing that my mother is ill at the moment (and her only son just jumped a continent), I figured I would do something nice for her. As a life-long Arkansan, there are several things we are proud of: the Razorbacks, friendly people, southern charm, and to some degree, Wal-Mart. This inauspicious little "Five-and-Dime" out of Bentonville, AR, eventually grew into the world's largest retailer - and at times the world's largest company. Not only are we proud that the "little-engine-that-could" store came out of our state, most of us really enjoy shopping there! You can buy literally everything there - cheap. Since my mother shops at Wal-Mart much more than anyone should, she has an affinity for the place. So, two days before Mother's Day, I decided to make a run to the local Wal-Mart.
When I arrived, I was absolutely shocked at how similar it looked to those we have in the States. What I learned in college business classes was the following: International Business Rule #1 - DO NOT carbon-copy your store and install it in a foreign country; they do not conduct business like you. However, as you can see from the picture below, this Wal-Mart had the biggest parking lot I've seen in Buenos Aires (outside the airport). There were even the guys round up buggies from the parking lot. And they had the automated cart-collector, too!
When I walked inside, (other than 1/8th of the store being a liquor store) it was also the same. The layout was a little different, but I looked on the shelves and saw "Great Value" brands and familiar clothing labels. Not that I really plan on shopping there, but I even saw a rather nice leather jacket for $100 (Argentine pesos), which, as of today's 3.7:1 exchange rate, was about $US 27.
Anyway, that was my adventure for today. Mom, Happy Mother's Day - I hoped you liked my tour. I think I'm going to try China town tomorrow for lunch. Every China town I've ever visited in any city always has the best food for the cheapest prices! I'm definitely hoping for more of the same.
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